CFR Events

Additional Resources

News Briefings

The Communications Department organizes briefings for members of the news media with CFR experts—usually in Washington, DC—in advance of major international events, such as summit meetings and presidential trips, or on timely issues in the news. Below is a list of the transcripts made from press briefings.

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, speaking at CFR, pledged a new plan to regulate systemic risks to the financial system, including enhanced oversight of "non-banks," even as the government moves to rescue the U.S. banking system.

The international community's Mideast envoy, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, says conditions are ripe to boost the Israeli-Palestinian peace process but stresses the need to move swiftly, especially in resolving the dispute over Gaza.

Speaking at the Council on Foreign Relations' New York headquarters, CIA Director Michael V. Hayden defended his agency's policies in the “war on terror” and accused irresponsible journalism of hindering vital CIA efforts.

Hoshyar Zebari, Iraq's minister of foreign affairs, told a meeting of the Council on Foreign Relations in New York that most of Iraq’s neighbors “have not been helpful at all” in controlling their borders to prevent insurgents from entering Iraq.

The Council lost one of its most distinguished members on December 8, 2006, when Ambassador Jeane J. Kirkpatrick passed away. A dedicated member of the Council for more than twenty-five years, Kirkpatrick served on the Board of Directors from 1985 to 1994. She was also vice chair of the Board from 1993 to 1994.

Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf has reiterated that his government does not provide safe haven to Taliban leaders waging war in Afghanistan. At a Council on Foreign Relations briefing he warned against linking the large ethnic Pashtun population in western Pakistan with Taliban extremists.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai says Pakistan holds the key to securing Afghanistan five years after the ouster of the Taliban. He told a Council on Foreign Relations meeting that terrorism and Taliban elements rooted in Pakistan were the contributing greatly to his country's security woes.

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran sparred with a senior group from the Council on Foreign Relations for ninety minutes Wednesday on virtually every contentious issue between the United States and Iran.

Karen Hughes, who runs America's public diplomacy, says policymakers increasingly are aware that U.S. actions abroad must not undermine America's stated goals and values. Hughes spoke at CFR headquarters in New York on Wednesday.

Supporters of Belarusian opposition candidate Alexander Milinkevich defied bans on public rallies to protest reports of widespread fraud during the March 19 presidential polls that overwhelmingly re-elected Alexander Lukashenka as president of the former Soviet republic. But, as cfr.org's Lionel Beehner reports from Minsk, protesters began streaming back home Tuesday evening as the cold Eurasian night began to fall.

Four former chairmen of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission have welcomed ongoing moves toward greater global convergence on market regulatory standards, saying they are key to the success of U.S. investors.

Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld on Friday said the U.S. government, its military, and its news media must face the fact that today's media environment is often hostile to the value of liberal democracies and the aims of America's "war on terrorism.

Independent Task Force Reports

Rates of heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and other noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) in low- and middle-income countries are increasing faster than in wealthier countries. The Independent Task Force outlines a plan for collective action on this growing epidemic.

New Council Special Reports

Campbell evaluates the implications of the Boko Haram insurgency and recommends that the United States support Nigerian efforts to address the drivers of Boko Haram, such as poverty and corruption, and to foster stronger ties with Nigerian civil society.

Koblentz argues that the United States should work with other nuclear-armed states to manage threats to nuclear stability in the near term and establish processes for multilateral arms control efforts over the longer term.

The authors argue that it is essential to begin working now to expand and establish rules and norms governing armed drones, thereby creating standards of behavior that other countries will be more likely to follow.

2014 Annual Report

Learn more about CFR’s mission and its work over the past year in the 2014 Annual Report. The Annual Report spotlights new initiatives, high-profile events, and authoritative scholarship from CFR experts, and includes a message from CFR President Richard N. Haass.Read and download »

Now Available: Foreign Policy Begins at Home

The biggest threat to America's security and prosperity comes not from abroad but from within, writes CFR President Richard N. Haass in his provocative new book. More